'He's Macron's lackey!' Lee Anderson rips into 'Slippery Starmer' for 'sneaking back' into the EU
Lee Anderson has torn into Keir Starmer, accusing him of trying to "sneak back" into the EU
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Conservative MP Lee Anderson has torn into Keir Starmer, accusing him of trying to "sneak back" into the EU at the "earliest opportunity".
His intervention came after Starmer was caught admitting that he did not want to diverge from the EU in a clip published yesterday.
The Tory Party deputy chairman accused the Labour leader of being "Macron's lackey", saying he'll do anything to "appease his EU puppet masters".
Meanwhile, vocal Tory backbencher Marco Longhi said Starmer's "mask has now slipped for good", with his latest comments showing his "intentions to disregard the referendum result".
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Starmer made the seemingly pro-EU comments at an event on Saturday, which saw him go beyond his normal cautious tone.
He said "we don't want to diverge" from the EU, adding: "There's a lot more common ground than you might think."
But hitting out at the comments, Anderson said: "It is quite clear that the EU's back door has been left open for Slippery Starmer and his band of EU loving socialist delinquent MPs to sneak back in at the earliest opportunity.
"Only a strong Conservative government will stop this nonsense and keep our word to the millions who voted to leave.
"Starmer now appears to me Macron's lackey and will do anything to appease his EU puppet masters."
Longhi added: "If there is one thing, perhaps the only thing, Keir Starmer has not sat on a fence on it his EU Remain/Rejoin resolve; the only thing that changes with him is his ever-changing messaging to try and recapture Labour voters who wanted Brexit.
"But his mask has now slipped for good, people can see his treachery and his intentions to disregard the referendum result."
He added: "This is not rejoin EU through the back door, he’s knocking on the front door."
Responding to a question from former Sir Tony Blair aide John McTernan, Starmer said: "Most of the conflict with the UK being outside of the EU arises in so far as the UK wants to diverge and do different things to the rest of our EU partners.
"Obviously the more we share values, the more we share a future together, the less the conflict.
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The Tory Party Chairman accused the Labour leader of being "Macrons lackey"
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"And actually different ways of solving problems become available.
"Actually we don't want to diverge, we don't want to lower standards, we don't want to rip up environmental standards, working standards for people that work, food standards and all the rest of it.
"So suddenly, you're in a space where, notwithstanding the obvious fact that we're outside the EU and not in the [European Economic Area], there's a lot more common ground than you might think."
The clip was published over the weekend after being recorded by a Sky news reporter.
But Labour sources have said the event was widely publicised, dismissing claims that it was covertly recorded.